Ric Flair‘s family is in mourning
The WWE icon’s stepson Sebastian Kidder has died. He was 24.
His mother Wendy Barlow, the wrestler’s ex, confirmed to TMZ that her son died by suicide Oct. 26.
“I am devastated and shocked,” she told the outlet in comments posted Oct. 26. “This is an epidemic with your young men. And mental health.”
Wendy also announced Sebastian’s passing on social media, sharing one of his final photos, a selfie, which he had himself posted on his own page the day he died.
“There are no words to express the pain I am feeling from the loss of my Baby @sebastianonthemic,” she wrote on Instagram. “Mommy Loves you.”
Sebastian, whose mom played “Fifi the Maid” alongside Ric at World Championship Wrestling (WCW) events, grew up in the Atlanta area and is one of four siblings. He was a rock musician and had released his first album in July.
He told Fox 5 Atlanta the previous month that the record incorporates “a lot of pain, a lot of suffering,” plus romance, sexual energy and lust.
Wendy had expressed her pride in her son’s musical milestone.
“I hope everyone will give the gift of listening to my son @sebastianonthemic music on his Birthday,” she wrote on Instagram at the time, sharing a pic of herself with Sebastian. “I am so Proud of him following his Dreams. It’s not easy opening yourself up to the World. Please go to Spotify, Apple Music etc and check out his new album titled Under the Moon.”
Sebastian dropped his first music video, “Goth Girl at Bar,” in June. Both his mom and Ric, who announced their split after 13 years in September, promoted it on their social media pages.
During the TV interview, Sebastian also talked about growing up with the WWE Hall of Famer, 75, whose real name is Richard Fliehr.
“Growing up with Ric as a stepdad, it was very different, very unique, that’s for sure,” Sebastian said. “You go out for a family meal and you’re just surrounded by fans and you’re already exposed to that at an early age, everybody coming up, wanting pictures, autographs, stuff like that.”
The singer added, “I mean, what kid has Post Malone coming over to the house and having dinner with the family? Darius Rucker pulled up with his big tour bus one time.”
Sebastian actually got his start in the entertainment business as a child actor. “When I was 10 years old, I started as the double for Carl on The Walking Dead,” he told Fox 5 Atlanta. “That was really the stepping stone right there. I fell in love with it, and here I am.”
Ric, a father of four, has not publicly commented on Sebastian’s death, which comes more than 11 years after his and ex-wife Elizabeth Harrell Fliehr‘s son Reid Flair, also a wrestler, died at age 25.
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